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New Balance Nationals Indoor 2018 Storylines - Preview

Published by
DyeStat.com   Mar 8th 2018, 2:08am
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New Balance Nationals Indoor: 2018 Storylines

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

A serious storm in the Northeast is likely to disrupt some travel plans, but hopefully the delays won’t affect the fields at this weekend’s New Balance Nationals Indoor. Once again, this meet is poised to be a blockbuster that begins Friday and builds to a crescendo Sunday afternoon. 2017 COVERAGE

It all begins a night early this year, with the induction Thursday night of the first class into the NSAF National High School Track and Field Hall of Fame at the New York Athletic Club.

START LISTS

LIVE WEBCAST INFO | THURSDAY'S HALL OF FAME INDUCTION WEBCAST

Here are some of the top storylines we’ll be watching:

Who’s The Fastest?

The boys 60-meter dash is absolutely loaded. The U.S. leaders in the 55 (Mario Heslop of Franklin NJ) and the 60 (Brendon Stewart of DeMatha Catholic MD) are both in it. Simplot Games champion Dallin Draper is coming west from Utah, Pennsylvania state champ Austin Kratz is in it, as well as Alabama state champion Okheme Moore.

But the favorite might be Anthony Schwartz from Miami (American Heritage), who has already run 10.13w outdoors for the 100 meters. Tyrese Cooper is also in the mix, although his best events are the 200 and 400, where he is the defending champion.

She’s A Freshman

Tamari Davis could use the weekend as a coming out party. The freshman from Gainesville FL, who won the Nike Elite Camp 200 meters at the Prefontaine Classic last year as an eighth-grader and then torched the freshman class national records in the 60 and 200 at the Dunamis Super Meet this winter, is definitely one of the rising stars to watch this weekend. She could have her hands full in the 60 and 200 this weekend. Veterans on the national stage, Lanae-Tava Thomas (New York), Abby Steiner (Ohio), Arria Minor (Colorado) and Thelma Davies (Pennsylvania), are all in the hunt for national titles in the dashes, too.

Where There’s Smoke

If he’s healthy this weekend, Tyrese Cooper could be a tough man to stop in his specialities. Cooper, a junior at Norland FL, swept the 200 and 400 last year. He ran 21.06 to win the 200 and set a meet record with 46.55 in the 400. However, there are reports that Cooper has a groin injury that could jeopardize his ability to run all out this weekend. He is entered in three events, as of Tuesday, so time will tell what he decides.

Minor Key

Arria Minor, the talented junior from Denver East CO, comes into the meet as the top seed in the girls 400 meters. She ran a US#1 53.47 at the Simplot Games but would love to get that time down into the 52s this weekend. The past two years Sydney McLaughlin owned this event, running 51.84 in 2016 and 51.61 last year. Those records aren’t going anywhere.

Hasty Return

Brodey Hasty has turned his back on the sub-four mile pursuit, at least for now. The senior star from Brentwood, Tenn., is No. 3 all-time behind Drew Hunter and Alan Webb in the indoor mile, and came oh-so close with his 4:00.05 at the NYRR Millrose Games. But Hasty is back to defend his 2-mile title after running 8:45.16 last year. He’s also entered with his Brentwood Track Club teammates in the distance medley relay, a race that also includes Jungle TC (Loudoun Valley VA).

Girls 5,000 Record Streak Over?

Brie Oakley became the seventh straight winner of the New Balance Nationals Indoor 5,000 meters to break the national record last year when she ran 15:55.75. That record was broken earlier this year when North Rockland NY sophomore Katelyn Tuohy crushed it at the Virginia Showcase, where she ran 15:37.12. Tuohy has nothing left to prove in the 5,000 this year, so she is opting for the 2-mile, along with the sprint medley relay and distance medley relay. So that means it’s highly unlikely that anyone is going to break the record Friday night. It could be a very good race with Jacqueline Gaughan (Exeter NH), sisters Grace and Lauren Ping (Cotter MN), Monica Hebner (Northern Highlands NJ) and Brooke Rauber (Tully NY), but it’s unlikely that anyone will be racing the clock.

Rematch In The Hurdles

Emily Sloan of Rock Canyon CO ran a blistering fast 8.07 seconds in the 60-meter hurdles at the USATF Indoor Championships against some of the top professionals in the world. That’s No. 2 all-time behind NBNI meet record holder and 2016 champion Tonea Marshall, who ran 8.02. Sloan will get a chance to face the one prep athlete who has beaten her this winter. Tia Jones from George Walton Comprehensive GA ran 8.15 to beat Sloan at the Dunamis Super Meet outside Atlanta. Jones is the reigning Pan Am U-20 champion and has already run 13.27 outdoors this month in the 100-meter hurdles. Grace Stark of White Lake Lakeland MI ran a national junior class record 8.12 to prevail Feb. 17 against Jones (8.23) at the Kentucky High School Invitational and will also be pursuing Marshall’s national prep record.

Rematch In The Hurdles, Part 2

Remember when Bullis MD and Western Branch VA went head to head Dec. 29 in the girls shuttle hurdles relay? Bullis won it in 31.13 seconds and Western Branch was right there in 31.14 at the Marine Corps Holiday Classic. You can take it to the bank that both of these teams remember it and both of them are looking to go after Western Branch’s 2017 national high school record of 30.63. There is a good chance that one team, or both, skims under that record. 

Do It All

Kyle Garland of Philadelphia (Germantown Academy) is entered in the multi-event pentathlon, as well as the championships of the 60-meter hurdles and the high jump. Garland could be looking to take down the national record in the pentathlon, which is 4,307 points by Gunnar Nixon in 2011. Garland has a personal best of 4,150 points, set while winning the event last year.

Likewise, Anna Hall of Valor Christian CO is back to defend her pentathlon title. Hall is also entered in the high jump.

More Bullis

The girls from Bullis will take on Western Branch and the other top sprints/hurdles powers in more than just the shuttle hurdles. The 4x200 relay team smashed Long Beach Poly CA’s national high school record in the 4x200 relay and will be looking for a championship in not only that event but the 4x400 as well. Shaniya Hall and Masai Russell are the big players for Bullis on the relays and they could be taking aim at more national records.

Triple Threats

The top two girls in the triple jump, Jasmine Moore of Grand Prairie, Texas, and Lexi Ellis of University Place, Wash., will go head to head in the triple jump. Moore is the national leader at 42-9.50 and Ellis is next at 42-7.75. That’s one of the great things about this meet – athletes so good that they rarely get pressed by competition back home are able to go against someone who can push them. That sort of thing leads to PRs and records.

Throwing Weight Around

Sophomore Trey Knight is traveling all the way from Ridgefield, Wash., to have his first look at the weight throw culture in the East. Knight, coached by his grandfather, has a 12-foot lead over the rest of the country and broke the sophomore class national record with 83-6.75. It will be an eye-opening experience for Knight, who has never been to New York. Knight also hopes for a top-five finish in the shot put, but the favorite there is Oklahoma City’s Patrick Larrison, who has thrown 66-7.25.

Unusual double

Sophomore Taylor Ewert of Beavercreek OH brings an unusual skill set to the championship meet. She's an excellent distance runner, qualifying for Nike Cross Nationals out of the Midwest Region and placing 18th to earn All-America honors. Ewert is also an elite racewalker, having broken the national prep indoor records for both the 1,500-meter and 1-mile distances Feb. 3 competing against professionals at the NYRR Millrose Games. Ewert is entered in the first of two sections in the championship 2-mile, in addition to the 1-mile racewalk, where she'll look to lower her high school record of 6:45.68.

Fourteen feet?

Reagann LeLeux from New Iberia Catholic LA, the younger sister of former national pole vault record holder Morgann LeLeux, has jumped 13-10 this winter and may be looking to get over the 14-foot barrier. The meet record is 14-2.75 by Desiree Freier in 2014. LeLeux could get a big challenge from Alana Carroll of Averill Park NY, who went 13-6 last weekend to win the New York state indoor title, along with Mia Manson of Monarch CO, who also boasts a 13-6 clearance this winter.



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